Speeches

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we are facing another serious crisis in Europe, which is severely affecting our families and businesses, caught in the grip of high energy prices and inflation. As with the pandemic, we cannot stand by and watch as businesses close and households become impoverished. In the most difficult moments it is necessary for Europe to go all the way to Europe, which puts before everything and everyone the common European interest, in spite of those who, even when the pandemic was beating hard, in the name of sovereignist ideology has always hindered common solidarity decisions and of those who, even today in my country, candidate themselves to govern by saying that the "package" of a more united, more solid and supportive Europe must end, only to come here and accuse Europe of immobility and inertia. I heard clear words from you today, Mr von der Leyen, about the future of the Union, the challenges we face, the measures needed now to tackle the crisis, starting with the reform of the entire energy market and new resources for households and businesses. But act with courage. And on the energy front, do not waste any more time to put a ceiling on the price of gas, the only measure that can stop this odious speculation in progress. Europe is a community of destiny or it is not Europe. You said well, Mr von der Leyen: our unity is our true strength; our divisions, our condemnation. But you all remember it in here.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, we could call it a conclusion with light and shadow that of the last European Council. There is no doubt that progress has been made on applications for membership. The European Union is the home of democracy. We are the institution to which more and more countries look as being able to give stability, security and peace. The shadows are those that we still see on energy and economic issues, in particular on the issues of security of gas supply and the fight against inflation, issues that cannot fail to have a European response. Although the Council conclusions call on the Commission to urgently continue its efforts to ensure affordable energy supplies, they do in fact postpone the decision to set a European cap on the price of gas, which could immediately curb inflation, which is also affecting basic necessities. In the face of fears from some that Russia will react to a price cap With retaliation, it should be remembered that Putin is already cutting off supplies, precisely to prevent Europe from filling deposits, and thus increase the blackmail against us in the winter months, when we will most need gas. And so we must act now by diversifying supplies, with massive investments in renewable energy, immediately setting a European cap on the price of gas and helping families and businesses in the pincer of salty bills, expensive gasoline and inflation in a context in which we are not yet out of the pandemic. Time is running out, we do not need European Councils that postpone decisions, but a united and supportive Union that knows how to give concrete and effective answers.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, we had followed the taxonomy regulation proposed by the Commission with great interest from the outset. An important measure that had the objective of establishing clear and shared criteria on the basis of which economic activities could be included among sustainable investments, thus avoiding phenomena of greenwashing and giving an unequivocal signal to those who want to contribute their private savings to the fight against climate change. Today we are debating a delegated act by which the Commission intends to include economic activities linked to the production of energy from gas and nuclear among those that would be taxonomy-compliant and therefore sustainable. The Socialists and Democrats Group is against this proposal. This delegated act, in addition to not respecting the scope of the regulation, as already explained in the previous interventions, gives the wrong message to European investors and citizens because it labels what is not green as green, discrediting the entire regulation, because a source of energy that is a fossil fuel, such as gas, or a source, such as nuclear, whose production waste, waste, takes thousands of years to be disposed of, despite the principle of not causing significant damage, cannot be considered sustainable. We are well aware of the role of nuclear and gas in the coming years to ensure security of supply, but here the choices on the energy mix of the Member States are not in question, and excluding gas and nuclear from the taxonomy on investments that want to qualify as green does not prevent these sectors from obtaining public and private funding anyway. Rather, it's about being serious and clear. I would like to ask whether anyone in this House would really recommend gas and nuclear to a European citizen who wants to invest his savings in environmentally sustainable economic activities, to the detriment, for example, of renewable energy or energy efficiency. We cannot change this delegated act, but only reject it or accept it as it is. And we want to reject it. This is the time to show that we do not make fun of citizens and that we take seriously the fight against climate change and the future of the next generations.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, it is now clear to everyone that Putin's attack is not limited to military aggression in Ukraine, but aims to create economic and political instability in Europe: on the one hand with the blockade of grain supplies in Ukrainian ports, which exposes in particular the countries of North Africa to a serious food crisis with repercussions on migratory flows to the European countries of the Mediterranean, on the other with maneuvers on Russian gas supplies that are increasing energy prices, which in turn drive inflation. Today, credible economic interventions such as those in the country-specific recommendations can no longer be separated from action against the expensive energy concerted at European level. The Council conclusions of last May provided for a study on the feasibility of introducing temporary caps on gas import prices. But time is running out. Urgent action is needed now. The malaise of European families and businesses, squeezed into the pincer of salty bills, expensive gasoline and inflation even on food, is deepening. A European cap on gas prices that blocks these speculations would be the best answer to their difficulties and would demonstrate once again that a united European Union can make a difference in the concrete lives of citizens.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, when the European Parliament voted on the climate law only a year ago, it made a clear commitment to reduce climate-changing emissions by 55% by 2030, with the dual objective of combating climate change and innovating our production system and making it, precisely because it is more efficient and more sustainable, even more competitive. Today there is a third reason, after the war in Ukraine, that makes that commitment even more stringent: reducing our dependence on fossil fuel imports which makes our countries more vulnerable and shifts wealth out of Europe. The revision of the ETS Directive and the introduction of the new carbon border adjustment mechanism are two of the key pillars to achieve these objectives. They are, in fact, necessary tools to accelerate the decarbonisation of our industrial system and prevent, at the same time, non-EU production not subject to emission control and reduction mechanisms from crowding out domestic competition with lower production costs. To all those in this Chamber who, with spurious excuses, want to put the package in the drawer Fit for 55, we answer that without the ecological and energy transition we do not get out of dependence on fossil fuels from abroad, increase the cost of the bills of citizens and businesses and do not guarantee a more sustainable environment for future generations. That is why we need clear, ambitious and forward-looking legislation, with clear timelines and targets, that tells our industries, our trading partners and citizens what direction Europe is heading and does not want to go back on.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we have just voted to hold a debate on Wednesday on what has happened in Nigeria. So we risk having a debate on a very important topic, but in a very short time, unless the ID group decides to change the topic of the topical discussion with this important debate on price increases in Europe.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, no, I really did not want to speak out against it. Indeed, we believe that what happened yesterday in Nigeria is a real massacre of women, men and children and that it certainly deserves a debate in plenary. However, we ask the ECR Group to consider not holding the debate tomorrow, but postponing it until Wednesday.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, with Russia's invasion of Ukraine, we all came together against Putin's act of military aggression. Yet, if we rewind the tape, we realize that it has not always been so, that in recent years we have not all been on the same side; In the face of our condemnation of a regime that stifles internal dissent and restricts democratic freedoms, there were those who, whether they were called Le Pen or Salvini, Putin praised him! In fact, he showed it right here in this House, wearing a T-shirt of his own. fan club, as a political and cultural example. The same ones who, while accusing us of being succumbing to the interests of Brussels, went to Moscow to establish ties and find funding, thus promoting a clear international political project, which had Putin as a point of reference and sovereignism as an alternative to European construction. Then we are pleased that today everyone has condemned the aggression of Ukraine, but that is not enough. There must be a real distance from now on from that Putin who has always and only had one goal: destabilising Europe, weakening it, dividing it, to the point of intervening in the lives of our democracies with planned disinformation and direct support for political forces close to the regime and opposed to European integration. Now for all this there is no more space.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the Bucha massacre has shocked us: But a unanimous condemnation of the atrocities committed by the Russian army is no longer enough, and solidarity with the Ukrainian people is no longer enough. We must stop this barbarism: They must stop these war crimes against defenseless civilians. Despite the heavy effects on the Russian economy, the sanctions put in place so far are not bringing Putin to the negotiating table for an immediate ceasefire. Now is the time to do everything we can, to increase our efforts. The new sanctions package, the fifth, provides for a first major ban on coal imports from Russia. But this year Moscow could earn more than $300 billion only from gas and oil exports, even third more than in 2021, with which to finance other atrocities, such as those committed at the gates of the Ukrainian capital. That is where we need to act. We cannot see more Buchas before we come to decisive measures to stop gas and oil imports from Russia as soon as possible. It is a difficult road, we know, but it is feasible, if we do not lose sight of the only real weapon we have: our cohesion. We have faced the pandemic by remaining united and supportive, first with the joint purchase plan for vaccines and then with Next Generation EU. The same approach must now be affirmed in order to ensure adequate energy security in Europe and to counteract shock This may result from a blockade of gas imports from Russia, which will have different effects in individual Member States. Diversification of energy supplies and sources, joint gas storage and purchases plan, increased investments in renewables and interconnections, joint support to sectors in crisis and cap on the cost of gas suffered, against speculations that are putting households and businesses in difficulty: These are the actions to be taken. We don't have easy times ahead of us, but we have no alternative. It is the price we must pay for the defence of our freedom and dignity and, above all, for stopping the war in Europe.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, there is always too little talk about it, yet climate change is a reality, even in our latitudes. The data from the IPCC report we are debating today confirm the drama of a situation that, if we do not take it in hand now and if we continue to turn the other way, will become the next serious emergency with which we will have to measure our generation, already tried by the pandemic and this tragic war in Ukraine. And so I say, especially to those who want to put the Green Deal in the drawer these days because there are other problems, that it is precisely the ecological transition that is the key to responding not only to energy independence from Russia, which is absolutely necessary today, but also to climate change and extreme weather events, which are already having repercussions on our food security and on the scarcity of water resources but also, in general, on our economy, because floods and droughts have a cost and, unfortunately, many times, also in terms of human lives. There is a point of no return indicated in the report that we cannot afford to overcome, also because today we have all the tools.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Putin's military invasion of Ukraine has brought the war back to the heart of Europe. But the war in Ukraine is not just aggression against a sovereign state, it is a frontal attack on our values of freedom, self-determination and democracy. If we want these values to continue to be guaranteed in the future, in Europe and elsewhere, we must be able to fully grasp the new phase that is opening up. The European Union responded in a timely and coordinated manner with a series of economic sanctions packages and helped the millions of refugees who arrived at our borders. It wasn't obvious. Putin was counting on our internal divisions and he was wrong. Once again, the Union was able to act together in the face of difficulties. But it's not enough. This war is showing the need to accelerate on our strategic autonomy, reducing energy dependency, strengthening our common defence capability, speaking with one voice in foreign policy, building a stronger European economic base. The Versailles Summit, underlining the Union's total support for Ukraine, also focused on the most pressing challenges we face. Now, however, actions must follow, starting from the meeting of the next Council, starting with the response to the energy crisis, with strong investments in renewable sources, with joint gas purchasing storages to reduce already this year, already from now, the dependence on Russian supplies, and with the introduction of a European cap on the price of gas, to calm electricity prices now and in the future and avoid the collapse of households and businesses. Only in this way, only by strengthening our strategic autonomy, will we really be able to make the force of the law prevail over the law of force.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I want to begin by thanking all the Members who have spoken today in this beautiful debate. I would also like to thank Commissioner Sinkevičius for his support over the past few months and, above all, I would like to thank the IMCO, TRAN and ITRE rapporteurs for their joint work and the ENVI shadow rapporteurs, with whom we have worked very well. You've got it, we've all said it: this regulation was already important before, for the reasons that have been well explained, but the war in Ukraine has made this dossier even more strategic, because we have understood how important it is to focus on the productive autonomy of the central sectors for our development and for our competitiveness, I think of energy but I also think of batteries, since, moreover, these two sectors are very close to each other. And so, to the few colleagues who have asked here to stop, to abandon the ecological transition, the energy transition, just because we do not have raw materials to use for batteries, and therefore for our energy autonomy, I ask if we must, by chance, also return to the coin-operated phone, since batteries are used not only for electric mobility, but also for our phones. And then I doubt that the ideological approach belongs not to those who are defending this regulation, but rather to those who do not want to see that this regulation is exactly the answer to dependence on other countries, because it increases recycling rates, because it strengthens production chains in Europe and, at the same time, focuses on due diligence It focuses on human health and protection. And then I say that not only must we not stop, but we must obviously run.

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, it is enough to look around us in this House too to understand how the use of batteries is already an integral part of everyone's daily life, and it will be more and more so in the coming years if it is true, as it is true, that Europe has set itself the objective of climate neutrality by 2050. In fact, mobility will be increasingly sustainable, our cities increasingly smarter and to focus more on renewable energy sources we will increasingly need accumulators. In a word, batteries will be the pillar on which to build our new paradigm of sustainable development. That is why the regulation we are debating is crucial. Fundamental to create a real value chain around this product in Europe, starting from the rules and standards in the design and construction up to new target recovery and recycling of batteries. For the first time, European legislation takes into account the entire life cycle of a product. Here we are talking from the moment the product is conceived, then from its design, until the end of life, as I said before. This new holistic approach – I would like to emphasise this – should from now on be the rule for future legislation on sustainable products and the circular economy. And it is no coincidence that this holistic approach has been proposed for a product such as batteries, which in the coming years will see a significant increase in its use but also in its application in new sectors. To give some numbers: It is estimated that the use of batteries, for electric vehicles only, will increase by 15 times from 2030 to 2035, not to mention that already today, already at this time, more and more light means of transport such as scooters, e-bikes and e-scooters are spreading. These data to understand how the use of strategic materials at the base of the technology will also increase hand in hand, in particular lithium ions and therefore cobalt, lithium, nickel and manganese, of which, unfortunately, Europe is poor and, to date, completely dependent on imports. To be able to keep up with our competitor ensuring strategic autonomy in supply and exploiting the potential of new technologies, industrialization policies must be put in place that use the principles of circularity. Therefore, the new regulation must have a dual objective: ensuring on the one hand a high level of protection of human health and the environment, but also ensuring with harmonised standards that battery production remains in Europe. In fact, we must avoid the mistake made in the past for solar panels, for which the marketing incentive is not matched by the creation of a new European industrial sector. Maximum carbon footprint, minimum recycled content, performance standards, durability and removableness are the main sustainability requirements, introduced for the first time for batteries, which must aim to become a benchmark for the entire global market and will have to be applied to every type of battery marketed in the European market, including those imported from non-EU countries. To make batteries truly sustainable, it is not enough to respect the environmental aspect and avoid predatory actions on natural resources, but this must be combined with respect for social rights, one of which is the ban on the exploitation of child labour in raw material extraction mines. Through this regulation we have set ourselves this goal and we have made, for the first time, the due diligence Mandatory for a specific product. Therefore, all batteries placed on the market will be covered by these new rules. The increased use of batteries will also result in more waste. For example, the number of ready-to-recycle lithium batteries is expected to increase 700-fold between 2020 and 2040. It is well understood that high-quality and ambitious collection for all categories of batteries is the essential prerequisite for implementing a circular model and creating an efficient market for raw and secondary materials. The inclusion of mandatory requirements for extended producer responsibility and the increase of target The collection goes exactly in this direction. To conclude my speech, I think that we are all aware of the complexity of this legislation, which will also have to adapt to the evolution of new technologies, which are not yet fully mature. After all, however, we have before us a challenge that requires an immediate response. We, as Parliament, have grasped it, and I hope the Council can do the same, so that we have ambitious legislation in the short term that will enable the European Union to have all the means to become a global leader in the battery market.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, in the face of the arrival at our borders of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees, mostly women and children, who have not even been given the opportunity to flee with humanitarian corridors from their land battered by Russian artillery, Europe has not turned away, as it has done too many times, but Europe has shown its true face, its face of solidarity, it has put into practice those values that the Treaties have put at the basis of our being together. In a word, we can say that at last the response in the management of Ukrainian refugees has been European, as we have been asking for a long time and as it has not happened in the face of other migratory crises of our time, I think in particular of that of the Mediterranean, from which no second-class refugees arrive just because they have a different skin color from ours. The activation for the first time of the Temporary Refugee Protection Directive and all the actions that the Commission is putting in place ensure solidarity and humanitarian aid towards the Ukrainian population and solidarity between EU states in need of assistance and help. Solidarity and unity: the best response we could give also to Putin, convinced that he could use the migration crisis as a threat to the maintenance of European cohesion; On the contrary, this is not the case, on the contrary, we are responding with humanity to brutality. We must now add to the consistent commitment of the institutions to coordinate and facilitate the entry at European borders of the continuous flow of refugees and for the reception throughout Europe of women and children. All this while we must continue to condemn this aggression against a sovereign and free people and call for an immediate ceasefire to stop this massacre against defenceless civilians in Europe. A Europe that wants to continue to be a place of peace.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we have learned that Europe is credible in the eyes of the citizens if it becomes a means of changing people's lives for the better and to do so it must have the tools. In these dark years of pandemic, Europe has pulled out the tools, even new ones, not foreseen before. I am thinking of the joint purchase and distribution plan for vaccines – which you, President Macron, mentioned – but I am also thinking of the joint NextGenerationEU aid and debt plan. Of course, all this is not enough. There is no doubt, therefore, that we look with great attention to the French Presidency so that the work done so far does not stop, so that the tools that in recent months have given hope and confidence to families and businesses are not part of the emergency, but of the new season that we want to continue to build. That is why we must first go beyond the old economic and fiscal rules, reform the Stability Pact and make NextGenerationEU a permanent tool for relaunching Europe. Going back to the season of rigorism andausterity – as some would like in the Council and also here – means stopping huge investments for a new model of growth that is more environmentally sustainable and socially fairer, in order to build that design of Europe that you mentioned.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, there are many issues on the agenda of tomorrow's Council and there are two points that I would like to stress on all of them. First: Covid. We are in the midst of the fourth wave and unfortunately we are not yet out of this pandemic as we would have liked. We are not in the situation of a year ago, thanks also to the work of everyone, but we must not let our guard down and we must take all the necessary actions to combat this pandemic, starting with vaccinations. The Commission's decision to centralize purchases has allowed all states under the same conditions to have the necessary vaccines for doses, but not in all states we have the same percentages of people vaccinated. While respecting the autonomy of states, we must create the conditions for greater harmonisation in Europe, proceed quickly with third doses and data-driven information campaigns to convince people who are still reticent. I'll get to the second point. If we can contain the epidemic without new closures and lockdown, also helped by the extensive use of the COVID Pass, as is the case in many European countries, we will then be able to restart not only our normal lives, but also our economies. However, there is a fact that risks penalizing the recovery, it is called an increase in energy prices. Acting on taxes on bills and calming prices are certainly valid roads that individual states are implementing to give oxygen to households and small businesses, but we need coordinated action at European level, starting with the possibility of buying and storing gas together, while we vigorously pursue the implementation of the Green Deal with the increase of renewables and energy efficiency, to reduce our dependence on foreign and fossil sources. We expect decisive signals in this regard from the next Council meeting to make sense and to start 2022 with a further change of pace.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, certainly more could have been done, indeed more had to be done, at this climate conference in Glasgow. Today the consequences of climate change are under everyone's eyes, even in our latitudes, and no one can deny that we are facing an emergency like the pandemic we are already experiencing. More could have been done, however, at the same time, we cannot forget the results achieved in Glasgow, which many before me have already clearly highlighted, such as the gradual exit from coal even if, alas, with non-binding commitments, as well as the objective of reducing deforestation and reducing methane emissions. These results were unimaginable even two years ago, when Trump was still in the White House and had torn up the Paris Agreement, and China had not yet communicated its date for achieving climate neutrality. Europe, as had already happened in Paris, played a leading role in Glasgow in bringing to the table the great world players who, more than others, impact on global pollution. He did it with the credibility of those who, first, put everything on the table. Green Deal, not only as a tool to adapt to and combat climate change, but as a driver for a decarbonised and circular economy that boosts jobs and competitiveness. Right now that we have the largest European investment plan since the war, we need to keep the ambition of the new Fit for 55 package high and put the ecological transition at the heart of economic recovery, to accelerate the construction of a new model of development that is more environmentally sustainable and socially fairer, in a word safer for all.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, we already understood a year and a half ago, when the whole of Europe came to a halt, that we were faced with a truly insidious virus. Two years later, we are not in the same emergency situation as when the pandemic began, but the rapid increase in infections and hospitalisations in our countries in recent weeks is worrying and must be tackled with efficiency and greater coordination also at European level. Today, unlike two years ago, we have a wide availability of medical devices and above all we have vaccines. The Commission's decision to centralise the purchase allowed all Member States to have the vaccine under the same conditions. Nevertheless, we are facing a two-speed Europe, with states that have reached immunisation levels of about 90% of the adult population and others with much lower rates, and this is not good. Numbers in hand, the vaccine is the main tool to avoid new deaths and to avoid new closures that would undermine social and economic recovery. The regions in the most critical situations today are those where fewer people have been vaccinated and until we have high vaccination rates across Europe we will not get out of this pandemic. Today we also have a European instrument such as the Covid Pass, to facilitate safe freedom of movement between states. The Commission should ensure a coordinated application for the validity of the COVID Pass when travelling between Member States, in particular as regards the duration of vaccination and the third dose. One thing we should all have learned: If we move together, never losing sight of data and listening to science, our action to secure the health of citizens in Europe will certainly be more effective.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I would never have wanted a debate like this here today, but what happened in my country with the squadron attack on the headquarters of a trade union, the CGIL, by subjects belonging to Forza Nuova and other far-right organizations deserves a firm and decisive response, also from this Parliament. When we are witnessing acts with obvious neo-fascist matrices, with the premeditation in the choice of targets to be struck and the use of violence as a method of political action to attack democracy, institutions and trade unions cannot make the distinction that I have heard here too. And events like these must not even be devolved to the actions of a few isolated violent individuals, as has happened in my country, even by parties present in Parliament, with the precise desire to ambiguously and irresponsibly minimize the inspiration of these political organizations to the fascist legacy from which we can never distance ourselves to the end. But watch out, because the attack on democracy comes not only from the demonstrations of right-wing extremists, but also from racist insults. It also passes in Europe from illiberal laws that erase the rights of minorities, the freedoms of expression, it passes from the construction of walls, from the culture of intolerance, from populism, from nationalism, from the rhetoric of easy solutions. That is why we need a clear stance from the whole of Parliament, without exclusions. And I remember that this debate was not wanted by the Democratic Party, but was voted for by the majority of the groups in the Conference of Presidents. But we also need, and I conclude, a renewed commitment to the crises of today, to European integration, democracy, human rights and the rule of law with which we have ensured peace and prosperity in Europe for decades.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, we are all focused on Glasgow, but it must not be yet another meeting for the United Nations Conference, but a decisive appointment for action to adapt to and combat climate change. The latest IPCC report clearly shows that with the goals assumed so far by the signatories to the Paris Agreement, we will not achieve the goal of keeping global temperature rise below 2°C. The European Union has done its part, with the Green Deal, the ‘Fit for 55’ climate law, which – I agree with those who said it before me – is our response to the energy crisis, to rising energy prices, not the cause. But, unfortunately, only a few days ago China announced that it wants to further increase the use of coal in its energy mix, following the position already taken by other countries in the world, even industrialized. Then the COP must be an opportunity to bring all international actors to do what the European Union has done, putting in black and white the commitments they intend to make, starting with a binding and global agreement on the phasing out coal and an agreement on the disbursement by 2025 of the fund to accompany the Global South in the ecological and energy transition. We have experienced a health emergency, now we have the responsibility to avoid that the climate emergency already in place even in our latitudes produces irreparable damage to our ecosystem by disrupting our lives again.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we can only appreciate the work that the Commission has carried out over the last two years in the emergency situation due to the pandemic crisis. Let's think about the results of the vaccination strategy, which are enabling us to secure the health of European citizens, or the progress of the European Green Deal, with the presentation of the "Fit for 55" package for carbon neutrality, up to the Social Pillar Action Plan and the work on the digital transition. Not to mention Next Generation EU, an extraordinary tool for the recovery of our economies. These first years of the Commission's mandate have put our progressive agenda into practice, and now we also need to move forward with the programme that the Commission is presenting to us today for 2022. We are convinced, in fact, that the post-pandemic future cannot be based on an approach business as usualRather, it requires a radical rethinking of our society and economy, focusing on sustainable development, health, social progress and gender equality, which we want to see more in the Commission’s initiatives. Here I want to reiterate the main points on which we will characterise our political initiative. I start with social policies, which we do not find in the 2022 programme. Commitments adapted to the context created by the pandemic; We need an anti-poverty law, a revision of the interim directive and more directives on new forms of teleworking. These are the measures needed to ensure decent working conditions and keep pace with the changes taking place. Turning to tax policy and the governance economic. The COVID crisis called for the suspension of fiscal rules and highlighted the need for their reform. So the public consultation opened today on the Stability Pact is good, with the aim of closing the austerity season. For the same principle, it is also time to introduce a permanent fiscal capacity of the Eurozone, building on the successful experiences of Next Generation EU and the SURE instrument. On the rule of law, we will never tire of stressing that words must now be matched by concrete actions, starting with the full application of the Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation, which is strongly desired by this Parliament. I hope, in conclusion, that the Commission will not lose the momentum it has shown so far. The Socialists and Democrats Group intends to do its part, continuing to press constructively to improve the Commission's work programme for next year and beyond, in the interest of European citizens and the European Union.

Mr President, Madam President of the Commission, Prime Minister, ladies and gentlemen, the judgment of the Polish Constitutional Court represents a very serious and unprecedented precedent, which cannot remain without consequences and which risks seriously pushing Poland out of the European Union. Questioning the primacy of EU law means not recognising one of the founding principles of the European institutions, the principle that all European citizens can enjoy the same rights wherever they live. The decision of the Polish court is only the latest affront in time. First the attack on the independence of the judiciary, then the laws against freedom of information, women's rights and the LGBT community. We want a Union that includes Poland, but the Polish Government must know that this Parliament is not prepared to go above and beyond respect for the rule of law and respect for the fundamental rights of people, starting with those of Polish citizens. Europe is not a marriage of convenience to have generous European funds, but a community of destiny, which is based on shared values and principles that can not fail, unless you want to break the same common European project. And we will not allow it, for the citizens of Europe, but also for the Polish citizens who demonstrated.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we are concerned about rising energy prices. Meanwhile, because of the impact on the most vulnerable sections of the population, but we are also concerned because increases in bills can undermine the competitiveness of European companies and jeopardise the economic recovery in Europe. But let's start by saying clearly and unequivocally that the increase in energy costs does not depend on the transition to climate neutrality, but is linked to a series of causes starting from the increase in global energy demand, not followed by a parallel increase in supplies, which has dramatically increased gas prices. It has already been recalled that the European Union is totally affected by market dynamics and their effects, because it is dependent on imports for 90% of its gas consumption, which is still one of the primary sources of our energy mix. For this we must proceed, without wasting any more time, shipped to a Green deal and the growth of the production of energy from renewable sources, because they allow us to manage our energy production independently and therefore have a more stable price, accessible to all and combat energy poverty. In the meantime, national measures are not enough to contain the expensive bills, but Europe needs targeted support for those who cannot pay their bills and a concrete and common European gas plan is urgently needed: from the creation of a European gas purchasing platform, to the prospect of a common storage to have a European strategic reserve. These are initiatives that must be put in place as soon as possible – we await the Commission's package of measures – and that cannot, and must not, make us lose sight of the objectives of the Green deal: increase in renewables, green hydrogen, real investments in energy efficiency are and remain the way to achieve a sustainable energy system economically and above all socially.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the months we have been leaving behind have been difficult, but they have taught us a hard lesson. The pandemic on the one hand and the Afghan crisis on the other have shown, once again, how the challenges of our time can only be met with a united, solid and supportive Europe. A Europe aware of its role in the world. The return to national sovereigns today is simply an out-of-the-way currency. Now we are at the turning point of this legislature. The next two and a half years will be crucial to give new impetus and impetus to Europe. We have put in place an extraordinary tool like Next Generation EU to restart our economies and societies, but we cannot aim to get back to where we started. This requires the courage to close, first of all, the season of austerity and its rules, with a broad reform of our economic governance system, which cannot be separated from a permanent fiscal capacity of Europe and the integration in the European Semester of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the Green Deal and the Social Pillar, which must be mandatory objectives for a development that is environmentally sustainable and socially fair. A more solid and supportive Europe, however, is also one that does not turn the other way in the face of the cry of pain of the Afghan people as it has done so far and that, together with the activation of humanitarian corridors and a reform of migration and asylum policy, knows how to put aside selfishness to face international crises as a protagonist with a foreign and defence policy that is finally European. President von der Leyen, we supported you two and a half years ago by asking you to live up to the challenges ahead. Even more, today, we ask you to lead Europe in this decisive step without missteps precisely because, as Bebe Vio says, "if it seems impossible, then it can be done".

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we cannot fail to say clearly here that the military withdrawal of the forces of the international coalition from Afghanistan was a failure. But this does not mean calling into question twenty years of Western mission, in which we have tried to build a more democratic environment and fight terrorism. And precisely for this reason, now, we cannot leave that people alone, we cannot leave alone those women to whom we have said for twenty years: You have the right to a different life, where you can work, study, leave home alone. We have a moral duty to take care of those who today want to leave the country because they are threatened for collaborating with the international coalition or because they are committed to defending civil rights, just as we must continue to work together with our allies to improve the conditions for those who decide to stay in Afghanistan instead. In short, Europe cannot turn the other way and in this sense the conclusions of the last Council were, in my opinion, very disappointing. Today we need precise commitments immediately, on the activation of humanitarian corridors, on humanitarian visas, on support for refugees and we need a strategy for reception in Europe, in compliance with the Geneva Convention. There is, however, a hard lesson that we must all learn from this situation: What is needed is a truly unique European foreign and defence policy, without which Europe will never be a protagonist on global scenarios, but will always risk continuing to suffer only the effects of international crises.